Latest news with #AlbertJames
NZ Herald
30-04-2025
- NZ Herald
Police probe unexplained death in Feilding at home of elderly woman and son
'Police will guard the scene again overnight.' Neighbour Albert James said an elderly woman and her adult son had lived in the house and were 'very quiet'. He said they had never caused any problems on the street. 'We didn't see much of her ... they kept to themselves. 'The boy was a bit of a car fanatic, a typical Kiwi lad doing his work on cars in the shed. 'We know that there's a body but that's all,' he said. James said there were about four police vehicles outside the house today with officers investigating inside, but the street was 'all quiet'. 'The police were there all day yesterday.' Death 'tragic' for township Manawatū District Mayor Helen Worboys said it was 'tragic' to hear news of the unexplained death. She said from her understanding it was a younger person who had died. 'It is distressing to hear of a young person's death,' she said. 'So far it is an unexplained death, no suspicious circumstances at this stage, and they [the police] won't know more until the autopsy and report has been done later in the week.' Another neighbour, who lives across the road from the house, said there were 'quite a few cops' around yesterday. 'A mother and son live there, they're pretty quiet, they don't really cause a lot of issues,' she said. Another woman living on the street confirmed a mother and son had lived there but they had largely 'kept to themselves'. Police said the death was being treated as unexplained at this time. 'We know the police presence will be unsettling for Campbell St residents. However, we want to reassure them there is no cause for alarm.' Worboys said it was worrying for the community but they just had to await the outcome of the police process.
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Washington lawmaker proposes regulations for self-checkout machines
The state Capitol building in Olympia, Washington. (Photo by Albert James) Proposed legislation could change the way customers shop at grocery stores, as one Democratic lawmaker is pushing for regulations on self-checkout machines. House Bill 1739 would establish rules for when and how self-checkout stands could be used in grocery stores. If passed, self-checkouts could only be used when a regular checkout lane is open. An employee who monitors self-service lanes would have to do so exclusively, and be limited to supervising a maximum of two stands. For their part, customers would be limited to bringing just 15 items to check out. The regulations would apply to grocery stores over 15,000 thousand square feet in size, but not to any bulk goods stores with memberships. The Department of Labor and Industries would be responsible for investigating and enforcing violations with a fine. 'There has been a lot of challenges across Washington for grocery workers with unchecked automation and chronic understaffing,' said prime sponsor State Representative Mary Fosse, D-Everett. At a House Committee on Labor and Workforce Standards hearing Wednesday morning, Fosse said she wants a conversation about making sure the self-checkout technology supports clerks. 'We know it can be a convenience, but when it's used to–as a way to eliminate workers and cut labor costs, that's when it really puts workers and customers at risk,' she said. Grocery workers testified in support of the regulations, saying self-checkout makes them unsafe and overwhelmed. Clerks spoke about how they feel stretched too thin supervising multiple machines while keeping an eye out for theft, addressing malfunctioning stations, and generally helping customers 'On a particularly hard day, a woman threw a steak at me because her item did not qualify for a bogo deal we were running,' said Bellevue grocery clerk James Reed. 'I would have overridden the machine given the chance. She just didn't give it to me.' However, critics of the proposal argued stores themselves know best how to regulate self-checkout. Organizations representing grocery stores said other policies can better address theft and worker safety, and the bill is ultimately just too restrictive. 'Removing the flexibility that they have to meet staffing demands, customer demands and the other variables that come with operating stores,' said Brandon Houskeeper with the Northwest Grocery Retail Association. 'Including things like when stores are busier during holiday seasons, when stores are slower different times of the day.' The proposed regulations have yet to be scheduled for a vote out of committee. This article was produced as part of the Murrow News Fellowship program, a collaborative effort between news outlets statewide and Washington State University.
